U.S. patent number 6,588,617 [Application Number 10/053,684] was granted by the patent office on 2003-07-08 for rotative closure for beverage containers.
Invention is credited to Beverly Burke, Marjan Majcen.
United States Patent |
6,588,617 |
Majcen , et al. |
July 8, 2003 |
Rotative closure for beverage containers
Abstract
A rotative closure for beverage containers wherein a rotatable
sealing plate sits atop the fixed top plate of a conventional
beverage canister having a recess that corresponds with the recess
of the fixed top plate in such a manner that when both recesses are
aligned the user may pour out the contents contained therein.
Rotating the sealing plate until the corresponding recesses are
completely misaligned prevents the contents from escaping despite
the orientation of the container. Furthermore, entry into the
container is also refused.
Inventors: |
Majcen; Marjan (South Orange,
NJ), Burke; Beverly (South Orange, NJ) |
Family
ID: |
21985861 |
Appl.
No.: |
10/053,684 |
Filed: |
January 21, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/254.4;
220/258.2; 220/906 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D
17/4014 (20180101); B65D 17/4012 (20180101); B65D
2517/0014 (20130101); B65D 2517/0044 (20130101); Y10S
220/906 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
51/20 (20060101); B65D 51/18 (20060101); B65D
051/18 () |
Field of
Search: |
;220/254.1,254.4,258.1,258.2,258.3,253,821,906 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Newhouse; Nathan J.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Kroll; Michael I
Claims
What is claimed is new and desired to be protected by Letters
Patent is set forth in the appended claims:
1. A rotative closure for beverage containers comprising: a) a
substantially cylindrical base container having a closed bottom and
an open top; b) a fixed top plate member having a channel that when
placed over the open top of said base container and attached
thereto forms a hermetically sealed chamber therein; c) an etched
access tab manufactured in said fixed top plate member that
partially separates from said fixed top plate member when pressure
is applied thereto; d) a lever mechanism having a first end to
which force is applied upward and a second end forming a
penetration tab that applies pressure to said access tab when an
upward force is applied to said first end; e) a rotatable sealing
plate with a recess conforming substantially to said fixed top
plate and its respective recess and residing thereupon; f) a
pivoting fastening element fastening said lever mechanism and said
rotatable sealing plate to said fixed top plate in a manner to
allow said rotatable sealing plate to rotate with respect to said
fixed top plate; and g) means on said rotatable sealing plate for
engaging said lever mechanism so that said lever mechanism rotates
with said rotatable sealing plate comprising an inverted U-shaped
finger handle with flat ends attached to said rotatable sealing
plate and a curved upper section extending through an opening in
the first end of said lever mechanism.
2. A closure for a can circular in cross section comprising; a) a
fixed disc and a rotatable disc, said rotatable disc being mounted
on top of said fixed disc and attached to said fixed disc by a
fastening element located at the center of both said discs allowing
said rotatable disc to rotate with respect to said fixed disc; b) a
lift tab mounted on said fastening element to allow for rotation of
said lift tab with said rotatable disc, said lift tab having an
opening at a fulcrum to accommodate said fastening element; c) said
fixed disc having an etched section adapted to be separated from
said fixed disc when said lift tab is lifted to apply pressure
around said fulcrum on said etched section; d) a finger handle
mounted on said rotatable disc extending through said lift tab for
facilitating rotation of said rotatable disc and said lift tab,
said finger handle comprising an inverted U-shaped member with flat
ends attached to said rotatable sealing plate with a curved upper
section extending through said lift tab; and e) said rotatable disc
having an opening allowing said rotatable disc to be rotated to a
position to align the openings in said fixed and rotatable discs to
allow access to liquid within said container and rotated to another
position where said openings are not aligned and the contents of
said can are protected against contamination and spilling.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to containers and, more
specifically, to beverage containers. The present invention is a
rotatable plate that is used for resealing the opening of the
container created by the lifting of a tab and piercing the
preformed seal of the plate. The rotatable plate is comprised of a
planar element affixed to the beverage container by means of a
fastener that also secures the penetrating tab. The rotatable plate
has an aperture conforming substantially to the size and shape of
the beverage container aperture that is formed after lifting the
tab and breaking the preformed seal of the beverage container. The
rotatable plate has a protrusion that extends upward away from the
contents of the container. The fastener that secures the rotating
plate and penetrating tab act as the pivot point when radial force
is applied to the protrusion on the rotating plate.
Rotation of the rotatable plate until the rotating plate aperture
aligns with the beverage container aperture provides access to the
contents of the beverage container. Rotation of the rotatable
plate. until the rotating plate aperture is completely misaligned
with the beverage container aperture provides resealing of the
beverage container.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are other container devices designed as beverage containers.
While these beverage containers may be suitable for the purposes
for which they where designed, they would not be as suitable for
the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described. It
is thus desirable to provide an improved method to preserve opened
beverage container contents.
It is further desirable to protect the exposed beverage. container
contents from outside contaminations using the rotative plate of
the present invention. The prior art container has a tab that is
fastened to the top plate of the container that is used primarily
to pierce the preformed seal providing access to the contents of
the container with no means to reseal the top plate opening.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
A primary object of the present invention is to provide means to
reseal an opened beverage container.
Another object of the present invention is the preservation of the
contents of an opened beverage container.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide means in
which to protect against accidental spilling of the contents of an
open container.
Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide
protection against the introduction of outside contaminations.
Another object of the present invention is to provide interchange
ability between sealing and accessing the contents of the
previously opened beverage container.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide
self-contained means to reseal the contents of the previously
opened beverage container.
Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide
protection against insects of the previously opened beverage
container.
Additional objects of the present invention will appear as the
description proceeds.
The present invention overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art
by providing a means to selectively reseal the opening of a
previously opened beverage container.
The foregoing and other objects and advantages will appear from the
description to follow. In the description reference is made to the
accompanying drawing, which forms a part hereof, and in which is
shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the
invention may be practiced. These embodiments will be described in
sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice
the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments
may be utilized and that structural changes may be made without
departing from the scope of the invention. In the accompanying
drawing, like reference characters designate the same or similar
parts throughout the several views.
The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken
in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is best
defined by the appended claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
In order that the invention may be more fully understood, it will
now be described, by way of example, with reference to the
accompanying drawing in which:
FIG. 1 is an illustrative view of the prior art in use.
FIG. 2 is an illustrative view of the present invention in use.
FIG. 3 is an illustrative view of the prior art in use.
FIG. 4 is an illustrative view of the prior art in an open
position.
FIG. 5 is an illustrative view of the present invention in an open
position.
FIG. 6 is an illustrative view of the present invention in a
resealed position.
FIG. 7 is a top view of the existing art in the closed
position.
FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view in reference to FIG. 6 of the
existing art.
FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view in reference to FIG. 7 of the
existing art in the open position.
FIG. 10 is a top view of the present invention in the closed
position.
FIG. 11 is a cross sectional view in reference to FIG. 9 of the
present invention.
FIG. 12 is a cross sectional view in reference to FIG. 10 of the
existing art in the open position.
FIG. 13 is an exploded isometric view of the existing art.
FIG. 14 is an exploded isometric view of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE REFERENCED NUMERALS
Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar
reference chracters denote similar elements throughout the several
views, the FIGS. illustrate the high volume disposable aspirator of
the present invention. With regard to the reference numerals used,
the following numbering is used throughout the various drawing
figures. 10 rotative closure for beverage containers 12 base
container 14 fixed top plate of container 16 penetrating tab 18
etched section of 14 20 conventional beverage container 22 user 24
sealing plate 26 recess of 24 28 access recess of 14 30 access tab
32 finger handle 34 pivoting fastening element 36 channel of 14 38
lever mechanism 40 first end of 38 42 second end of 38 44 flange of
12
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The following discussion describes in detail one embodiment of the
invention. This discussion should not be construed, however, as
limiting the invention to those particular embodiments,
practitioners skilled in the art will recognize numerous other
embodiments as well. For definition of the complete scope of the
invention, the reader is directed to appended claims.
FIG. 1 is an illustrated view showing the user 22 spilling a
conventional beverage container 20 that is prone to spills once the
beverage container 20 is opened. The conventional beverage
container 20 is also exposed to outside elements and
contamination.
FIG. 2 is an illustrated view of the present invention 10 utilizing
a rotatable self-contained sealing plate 24 to protect against
exposure and outside contamination. The rotatable sealing plate 24
is turned to the closed position and the contents are shielded from
outside contaminates and thus preserved. Access to the contents is
gained by rotating the sealing plate 24 until the sealing plate
recess 26 is aligned with the recess of fixed top plate 14. The
rotation from closed position to open position can be performed as
many times as necessary.
FIG. 3 is an illustrative view of the prior art in use showing the
user 22 spilling the contents of a conventional beverage container
20.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the prior art. When the penetrating
tab 16 is lifted it pierces the etched section 18 of the fixed top
plate 14 and provides access to the contents of the base container
12. Once the access tab 30 is opened there is nothing to prevent
spillage or contaminates from entering the base container 12.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the present invention 10 in the
open position. To gain access to the contents of the base container
12, the user aligns the sealing plate recess 26 over access plate
recess 28. The extruded finger handle 32 is used to rotate the
sealing plate 24 into position. Lift the penetrating tab 16 to
separate the access tab 30 from the fixed top plate 14.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the present invention 10 in the
closed position. If the access tab 30 of the fixed top plate 14 is
broken, the contents of the base container 12 can be preserved and
protected from outside contaminates. To move the present invention
10 into the closed position, rotate the sealing plate 24 around the
pivoting fastening element 34 using the extruded finger handle 32
until there is no portion of the sealing plate recess 26 aligned
with the fixed top plate recess 28. The sealing plate 24 can be
rotated in either direction. To regain access to the base container
contents, rotate the sealing plate 24 so that the sealing plate
recess 26 is again aligned with the access plate recess 28.
FIG. 7 is a top view of the prior art in the closed position. The
fixed top plate 14 is sealed around the outer rim of the base
container 12. When the penetrating tab 16 is lifted it pierces the
access tab 30 thereby separating it from the fixed top plate
14.
FIG. 8 is a cross sectional side view of the prior art. The
conventional beverage container 20 provides an interlocking seal
between the base container 12 and the fixed top 14. The etched
access tab 30 is in the sealed position.
FIG. 9 is a cross sectional side view of the prior art in the open
position. The conventional beverage container 20 allows access to
the contents of the base container 12 by lifting upward on the
penetrating tab 16 thereby separating most of the access tab 30
from the fixed top plate 14 and creating an access recess 28 to the
contents therein. Once the penetrating tab 16 has been lifted and
the access recess 28 in the fixed top plate 14 has been separated
therefrom, there is no means to preserve or prevent contaminates
from entering the base container 12.
FIG. 10 is a top view of the present invention 10 in the closed
position. The rotatable sealing plate 24 is positioned between the
penetrating tab 16 and the fixed top plate 14 and are rotatably
fastened together by the pivoting fastening element 34. There is a
recess 26 in the sealing plate 24 of the same shape and size of the
etched section 18 defining the access tab 30. When the penetrating
tab. 16 is lifted though the sealing plate recess 24 it partially
separates the access tab 30 from the fixed top plate 14.
FIG. 11 is a cross sectional side view of the present invention 10
taken from FIG. 10 as indicated. Like the conventional container
20, the present invention 10 provides an interlocking seal between
the base container 12 and fixed top plate 14. The fixed top plate
14 is sealed around a flange 44 on the outer rim of the base
container 16. In addition, the fixed top plate 14 includes a
channel 36 around the outer rim to guide the flange 44 in the
rotating closure. The sealing plate 24 is positioned between the
penetrating tab 16 and the fixed top plate 14 and is secured by the
pivoting fastening element 34. In this state, the contents of the
container are preserved and protected from contamination.
FIG. 12 is a cross sectional side view of the present invention 10
in the open position. Like the conventional container 20, the
invention assembly 10 allows access to the contents of the base
container 12 by lifting upward on the first end 40 of the lever
mechanism 38 so that the second end 42 thereof with it's
penetrating tab 16 applies pressure against the sealed access tab
30. Using the finger handle 32, rotate sealing plate 24 and align
the opening in the sealing plate over the etched section of the
fixed top plate 14. Upon lifting, the tab will pivot at the
pivoting fastening element 34. This will partially separate the
access tab from the fixed top plate 14 as defined by the etched
section 18 thereof thereby providing access to the contents
contained therein. Once the access recess has been established the
user rotates the sealing plate 24 into the misaligned position to
prevent contaminates from entering the base container 12.
FIG. 13 is an exploded perspective view of a typical beverage
container 20 showing the base container, the fixed top plate 14 and
the lever mechanism 38.
FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of the present invention
showing the base container 12 with flange 44, the fixed top plate
14 with etched access tab 30 intact and the rotative sealing plate
24 with lever mechanism 38.
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or
two or more together may also find a useful application in other
types of methods differing from the type described above.
While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and
described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it is not
intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be
understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and
changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in
its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without
departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.
Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the
gist of the present invention that others can, by applying current
knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without
omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly
constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific
aspects of this invention.
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